The UK Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Ed Miliband has approved National Grid’s application to reinforce the electricity transmission network between Bramford substation in Suffolk and Twinstead Tee in Essex, England.
The £700m Bramford to Twinstead Reinforcement, part of The Great Grid Upgrade, will address an existing constraint on the network and help to transfer cleaner, greener energy from where it is generated to where it is needed.
Since 2021, three rounds of public consultation have taken place to help shape the proposals, which will see around 27km of existing overhead line removed and replaced with a mixture of new overhead line and underground cables in the Dedham Vale National Landscape and parts of the Stour Valley.
The plans also include supporting construction, maintenance and operational infrastructure, such as haul roads for construction traffic and cable sealing end compounds.
Strengthening the network in this way resolves a capacity bottleneck and will help deliver cleaner, greener energy from where it is generated to where it is needed, said National Grid.
“We are delighted that the Secretary of State has granted our application for development consent in line with the recommendation by the Planning Inspectorate,” said project director James Greenhalgh.
He added: “The Bramford to Twinstead Reinforcement is a vital project to address an existing constraint on the network that will help connect clean and low carbon energy to homes and businesses across the UK.
“The electricity transmission network in the east of England was built in the 1960s and needs significant upgrades to ensure that new sources of energy, such as offshore wind and nuclear, can be accommodated.
“Projects like the Bramford to Twinstead Reinforcement, which are part of the largest overhaul of the electricity grid in generations, are vital to ensuring the UK benefits from the huge amount of clean energy projects planned or currently under construction.
“Thank you to everyone who has engaged with our project so far – the feedback has helped to positively shape our proposals.
“As we look towards entering the construction phase, we remain committed to working with stakeholders and local communities. In the coming months we will share more information on how we will build the project, including how we will communicate about construction activity.”
The project is part of The Great Grid Upgrade, one of 17 schemes proposed across the UK. Some of these are new infrastructure so National Grid can connect more clean, green, more affordable sources of energy to the grid.
Others, like Bramford to Twinstead include strengthening the network to transport as much energy as possible around the country with infrastructure already in place, in the most efficient way possible.
Pre-construction survey work is already underway at various locations along the project route, prior to the planned start of major construction activity in the first half of 2025. Construction is also continuing at the grid supply point (GSP) substation site between Butler’s Wood and Waldegrave Wood, where the first supergrid transformer was delivered to site earlier this year.
Balfour Beatty has been appointed as the main works contractor for the project, while Murphy is delivering the GSP substation. Both organisations will work with National Grid to deliver the project.
The current estimated cost of completion for the Bramford to Twinstead Reinforcement is around £700m.